Coffee Talk #47: Favorite Games of 2009 #4 Street Fighter IV

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Dennis Miller not getting over with the WWE crowd in Texas, the Google Nexus One, or the various MLB trade moves made yesterday, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

As I mentioned last week, I’ll be counting down my five favorite games of 2009 in this week’s Coffee Talk columns and I’d love for you to join me! Let me know what your favorite games of the year were in the comments section. Remember, this isn’t about what games you thought were “best”. I want to know what you had the most fun with in 2009.

Street Fighter IV

#4 Street Fighter IV — I lost a ton of quarters playing various versions of Street Fighter in high school and college. Like many players, I abandoned the series for modern games like Soul Calibur, Dead or Alive, and Tekken. Street Fighter IV was a triumphant return to glory for the series. The game mechanics had that classic SF feel, while the visuals were modern and fresh. The game is deep, but accessible to players of various skill levels. I remember playing the game with friends that are no longer gamers, but remember how to spam fireballs with Ken and Ryu.

SFIV is just a brilliant combination of old and new. That only downer is that the game also reminds me of my most frustrating moments as a gamer in 2009 — trying to beat Seth when my Xbox 360 would randomly generate hundreds of vertical bars! He’s a cheap bastard as it is. Trying to beat him when you can’t see the damn screen?!? Not so easy.

U.S. Customs Officers Allegedly Beat Up Game Writer

Canadian Flag

Videogame and sci-fi writer Peter Watts says that Canadian U.S. customs officers beat the crap out of him. The customs officers say that Watts tried to choke one of them. GamePolitics reported:

Watts asserts that as the inspection began, he exited the car to ask officers what was going on. He claims they asked him to return to the car, at which point he asked them again what they were doing. Watts said that this act then resulted in him being assaulted, punched in the face, pepper-sprayed and thrown in jail for the night on charges of assaulting a customs officer.

Custom officials claim that Watts was “aggressive” from the beginning and refused to get back in his car. At this point Watts was about to be handcuffed, but resisted arrest said officials, and tried to choke an officer. This is when officers used pepper-spray.

As a fellow game writer, I’m a little bit scared of Canada now. Though to be fair, my work involves some of the country’s finest exports — Christian, The Hart Dynasty, Edge, etc. Still…I think I’ll play it safe and stick to this side of the border.

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Play Guitar Hero 5 with “Weird” Al Yankovic

Weird Al Yankovic

As part of Microsoft’s Game with Fame series, Xbox Live members will have a chance to play Guitar Hero 5 with “Weird” Al Yankovic on Tuesday, December 15. His session takes place from 7PM to 9PM ET. To get in the game in Weird Al, send a friend request to “WeirdAl GwF” and be online 30 minutes before the session starts.

I usually ignore all the Game with Fame promos, but this one was too awesome to pass up. I am a huge Weird Al mark. I love parodies of all kinds and Yankovic has provided some of the best. Whether you’re talking about “Eat It”, “Amish Paradise”, or his brilliant polkas, I’m totally down with Weird Al.

Do you have a favorite “Weird” Al Yankovic song?

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Coffee Talk #46: Favorite Games of 2009 #5 Pokemon Platinum

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, WWE giving Sheamus and Drew McIntyre championships, last Saturday’s fantastic day of boxing, or Accenture dropping Tiger Woods, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

As I mentioned last week, I’ll be counting down my five favorite games of 2009 in this week’s Coffee Talk columns and I’d love for you to join me! Let me know what your favorite games of the year were in the comments section. Remember, this isn’t about what games you thought were “best”. I want to know what you had the most fun with in 2009.

Pokemon Platinum 2

#5 Pokemon Platinum — Yes, I’m a Pokemon addict that has put more than 600 hours into Pokemon Pearl. As someone that loves breeding Pokemon for competitive battling, several of the additions in Pokemon Platinum were “must haves” for me. From move tutors that let you create more diverse combatants to challenging fight modes that test your mettle as a trainer, Pokemon Platinum has it all!

Of course Pokemon Platinum is rooted in the fantastic RPG gameplay that millions and millions of players have enjoyed for years. Weavile, I choose you!!!

Spike TV Videogame Awards (VGA) Winners List

Spike TV VGA

In case you missed it, here are the winners of the 2009 Spike TV VGAs. Check out the list and let me know what you think! Anyone get snubbed? Any of the winners undeserving? Or is the list mostly right?

  • Game of the Year: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
  • Studio of the Year: Rocksteady Studios
  • Best Independent Game: Flower
  • Best Xbox 360 Game: Left 4 Dead 2
  • Best PS3 Game: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
  • Best Wii Game: New Super Mario Bros. Wii
  • Best PC Game: Dragon Age: Origins
  • Best Handheld Game: Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
  • Best Shooter: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
  • Best Fighting Game: Street Fighter IV
  • Best Action Adventure Game: Assassin’s Creed II
  • Best RPG: Dragon Age: Origins
  • Best Multiplayer Game: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Hit the jump for the rest of the winners!

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Final Fantasy XIII Japanese Television Footage

Here’s a pair of Japanese television clips featuring Square Enix’s Final Fantasy XIII. Thanks for Andriasang for digging these up! There’s a bunch of new footage here that you don’t want to miss.

Hit the break for the next clip!

Continue reading “Final Fantasy XIII Japanese Television Footage”

Square Enix Busts Out Facebook and Twitter Pages for FFXIII

FFXIII Twitter

Square Enix has released official Facebook and Twitter pages for Final Fantasy XIII…because that game needs more hype. *snicker* Seriously though, it’s interesting to see how game publishers are using Facebook, Twitter, and blogs to promote their games. I know some of you hate Twitter, but it can be an incredibly useful marketing tool and a fantastic way for fans to keep tabs on their favorite games/athletes/celbrities.

Will any of you be following the game on Facebook or Twitter?

EA’s Tiger Woods’ Sim Adultery 2011

With Tiger Woods’ endorsement deals in a precarious state of flux — Gatorade has already dropped a Tiger-branded beverage, while Pepsi, Gillette, Tag Heuer, and others are considering dropping the star golfer — I think EA Sports ought to be proactive and flat-out humiliate him. It would be the ultimate cash grab that would satisfy analysts and shareholders that are only interested in the company’s short-term future. Since EA has been getting dinged for taking risks and launching new IPs for the last two years, it might as well try cashing in on one of its star’s woes, right?

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10

I can see it now…Tiger Woods’ Sim Adultery 2011!!! The game would obviously star Tiger, but the tone would be similar to a Leisure Suit Larry game. To keep development costs down, it would use The Sims engine and existing art assets (mostly female character models). The goal of the game would be to sleep with as many women as possible (the 18 holes) while avoiding the media, car crashes, and hot Swedish wives. Bold players would be careless with their trysts, texting sweet little nothings to their loved ones without bothering to delete the messages. Advanced players would pay an army of minions to cover their tracks (paying for hotel rooms for afternoon delight, sending text messages on your behalf, whisking you away when your wife attacks you with a nine-iron, etc.)

EA could make this game in months and cash in on all this “Tigergate” nonsense. Maybe then it could get shortsighted analysts and shareholders off its back, allowing its developers to work on original and high-quality games.

Microsoft Confident Halo Reach Will be the Biggest Game of 2010

Halo Reach

Microsoft director of product management Aaron Greenberg is certain that Halo Reach will be the biggest game of 2010. He recently told Gamasutra, “I feel confident that there’s nothing that will compare in size. Halo: Reach will be the biggest game of 2010.”

While I have no doubt that Halo: Reach will be one of the biggest titles of 2010, I’m not sure if it will be the biggest. Globally, I’d guess that Final Fantasy XIII will sell more, especially considering that it will be available for a longer period of time and on multiple platforms. Greenberg completely dismissed Gran Turismo 5 beating out his game, saying, “Is it launching next year? I’ve seen years and years of minigames, but I haven’t seen that the game is done.”

What do you think or Greenberg’s proclamation? Is he on the money? Or do you think another game will beat out Halo:Reach?

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